Columns

Over the last 25 years, I’ve spent the majority of my days literally looking up at the sky or the ceiling. My perspective is different from most healthy people since I’ve been lying down somewhere, either on a couch, bed, zero-gravity chair, or one of my beloved hammocks, for decades.

The 2026 International Hypoparathyroidism Conference wrapped on Sept. 21. I attended virtually and spent three days hearing about current clinical trials, new standards of care, and the prototype for a home-use calcium tester by Tralyte Health. It was wonderful to have so much information at my fingertips, and…

“Don’t lose your grip on the dreams of the past/ You must fight just to keep them alive.” — “Eye of the Tiger” by Survivor Not long ago, I was by the pool, staring at a blank screen and wondering what to write for my next column. I put on…

“Courage is resistance to fear, mastery of fear — not absence of fear.” — Mark Twain Imagine waking up each morning not knowing how you will feel that day. Welcome to my life with hypoparathyroidism! Following my diagnosis, I was lucky to have a husband who took care…

“Your past does not decide your future.” — Anonymous proverb Last weekend was a fruitful one in terms of hope, resilience, learning, and love. I was grateful to attend an annual conference organized by the Hypoparathyroidism Association, where I had the opportunity to hear from expert doctors, researchers, and…

There are many different sayings about war that boil down to the colloquial phrase “The known enemy is always better.” I often hear it bandied about the chronic illness community, and it’s fitting because I feel like I’ve been at war with my body this year. Thankfully, I may have…

It’s easy to get lost in the fun of summer, especially when on vacation. This was extra true for me when it came time for my annual trip with my lifelong best friends. Having missed last year due to my grandma’s memorial, I’d been counting the days to when we…

Before my flare-up in June, I was invited to join my favorite local bookstore, Sidetrack Bookshop, to do an author event for the city’s Pride weekend. The store is in Royal Oak, Michigan, which celebrates Pride at the end of July, dovetailing with Disability Pride Month. I…

“No day shall erase you from the memory of time.” — Virgil Having hypoparathyroidism makes my life different from most people’s. It’s not easy to put into words all the feelings that come with this rare disorder, which affects so many parts of my life. Lately, I haven’t been…

My brain feels like static as I try to sort through words and pull out the ones to help explain how I’ve been feeling over the last two months. It’s like I’ve been underwater, breaking through the surface for a day or two, then returning below. The most frustrating part…